Despicable Me 2

Time Out says

3 out of 5 stars

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Users say
(9)

5 out of 5 stars

Time Out says

3 out of 5 stars

Children learn through repetition, something that Hollywood’s animation studios are taking to heart this year. With sequels to ‘Monsters, Inc’ and ‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs’ also on the way, the multiplex is a veritable ‘Sesame Street’ of cuddly familiarity. Quite what kids stand to learn from this loud, broad and disjointedly amusing follow-up to the 2010 surprise hit is open to question. But its repetitive qualities are beyond reproach. Every bit as amiable and disposable as its predecessor, it recycles everything from slapstick gags to its own voice cast (Kristen Wiig pops up again, but as an entirely different character).

The first film ended with Steve Carell’s reformed Russian supervillain Gru settling down with his sickly-sweet trio of adopted daughters. Here, he’s still trying to go straight, with an unpromising business making jellies and jams in the pipeline. The MI6-style Anti-Villain League, however, has other plans. Enter goofy secret agent Lucy (Wiig) to whisk Gru into a madcap scheme to take down an unidentified despot with dastardly designs on Gru’s cute, cackling horde of canary-yellow minions. Right down to the closing-credits ‘audition’ for their upcoming spin-off feature, the frantic antics of these critters are scarcely disguised as the film’s raison d’être. The human activity, including Gru and Lucy’s appealing but half-baked romance, is strictly to get us from A to, well, A. Youngsters won’t mind. Their parents will be as charmed or annoyed – or, maybe, both – as they were the first time.

It's difficult to disagree too much with the review. The film starts very well and for the first half an hour is on top form. Thereafter it really goes astray. A frankly disappointing mid third that at best could be described as dull and probably better as poor sees the film lose its way with the parent angst over teen love storyline. It gets better towards the end and the last five minutes had me crying with laughter. In places superb, often involving the minions, sadly superb in far too few places, but generally OK. I was disappointed as I am sure will many who loved the first film. The kids will probably love it but a good 3 star film that could and should have been better.